Method of knitting a fabric having jersey knit and rib knit portions



May 26, 1964 7 G. C. MATZ METHOD OF KNITTING A FABRIC HAVING JERSEY KNIT AND RIB KNIT PORTIONS Filed Sept. 28, 1961 INVENTOR. GEORGE C. MATZ ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,134,249 METHOD 0F KNITTING A FABRIC HAVING JERSEY KNTT AND RIB KNIT PORTIONS George C. Matz, Gilbertsville, Pa., assignor to Swiss Knitting Company, Inc., Dover, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Sept. 28, 1961, Ser. No. 141,418 2 Claims. (Cl. 66-148) This invention relates to garments of fabrics which have a rib-knit portion interknit with a jersey knit portion.

Heretofore, in garments provided with a jersey knit body portion and a rib-knit cuff portion, each loop of the course of the rib-knit portion adjacent the jersey knit portion was interknitted with each adjacent loop of the jersey knit portion. Where the body portion of the garment was a fine jersey knit, for example 30 gauge or higher, the interknitting of each loop of the rib-knit fabric with a corresponding adjacent loop of the jersey knit fabric resulted in a garment having cuff portions which were excessively gathered at the interconnection line along the body portion of the garment which impaired the appearance of the garment as well as its fit on the wearer. Finer gauge rib-knit fabric might partially alleviate this bunching condition of the rib-knit fabric but so far as I am aware no rib knitting machines are presently available to provide a rib-knit cuff of such character that all the loops of the adjacent course of the rib-knit fabric can be interknit with corresponding adjacent loops of a fine gauge jersey knit fabric, for example 30 gauge or higher without producing the indicated objectionable condition. As a result, jersey knitted garments provided with interknit ribknit cuffs were heretofore limited to a comparatively coarse jersey knit fabric, for example a fabric of 24 gauge or less.

One object of the present invention is to obviate the above indicated objections in a knitted garment or fabric which has a fine gauge jersey knit portion and a rib-knit portion or cuff interknitted with the jersey knit portion.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method of knitting a garment or fabric of the above indicated type.

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be fully understood from the following description of the invention considered with reference to the accompanying drawings which are illustrative of the invention and not in limitation thereof.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view of the front of a garment in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a more or less diagrammatic illustration of a rib-knit cuff to which the body of the garment is interknit; and

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic illustration of a portion of the fabric of the garment at the adjacent jersey knit and ribknit portions of the garment.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the garment 10, herein illustrated as a mans sport short, includes a fine gauge jersey knit body portion 12 and the rib-knit cuff portions 14 and 16 which are interknit with the body portion and the sleeves along the lines 18 and 20, respec tively. The rib-knit cuff portions of the garment are knit on a fiat bed rib knitting machine and the loops of the course along an edge of the cuff are transferred to the needles of the transfer bar of the jersey knitting machine which is a flat bed full fashioned knitting machine. Operation of the jersey knitting machine results in the initially formed loops of the jersey fabrics being interknit with the loops of the rib-knit fabric which were placed on the transfer bar and the resulting garment has a jersey knit portion which is interknit to the previously formed ribknit cuff.

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In accordance with the invention, the transfer bar of the jersey knitting machine is provided with half the number of needles which are provided on the jersey knitting machine and each loop of the course of the rib-knit cuff is transferred to a corresponding needle on the transfer bar. Operation of the jersey knitting machine results in the interknitting of the loops of the rib-knit cuff, which are looped over the needles of the transfer bar, with adjacent alternate loops only of the resulting formed jersey knit fabric and a knitted fabric is formed wherein each loop of the adjacent course of the rib-knit portion of the fabric is interknit with corresponding adjacent alternate loops only of the jersey knit fabric in the first course of the latter.

Referring now more specifically to FIG. 2, which diagrammatically illustrates the cuff 14 or 16, it is to be noted that said cuff is knitted with a loose course indicated at 22 and additional courses 24. The loops of the course 24 are looped over the corresponding needles of the transfer bar in a well understood manner. The courses 24 provide additional fabric adjacent course 22 which facilitates handling of the cuff for transfer to the transfer bar and it will be understood that the yarn of the courses 24 is unraveled and removed in a well understood manner before the jersey knitting machine is operated. The needles of the transfer bar are indicated in FIG. 3 by reference numeral 26 and it will be seen that the yarn of each Wale a, b and c of course 22 of the rib-knit cuff is looped over the associated needle 26 of the transfer bar.

The needles of the jersey knitting machine are indicated by the reference numeral 28 and it will be noted that there are twice as many needles 28 as needles 26 of the transfer bar. Alternate wales A, C and E only of the adjacent course 30 of the jersey knitted fabric are interknit with the adjacent course 22 of the rib-knit cuff and intermediate wales B and D of course 30 are not interknit with the rib-knit cuff. These non-interknit loops B and D do not straighten out during the knitting operation due to the provision of dividers 32 of the jersey knitting machine which are provided between alternate pairs of needles 28. Sinkers 34 are provided between adjacent dividers.

It will be understood that the gauge of the fine jersey knit fabric may vary over a wide range but is preferably gauge 30 or finer. For example, a satisfactory garment has been produced in which the jersey knit body portion of the garment was a 51 gauge fabric and the rib-knit cuff was knitted on a 12 cut flat bed rib knitting machine which has 24 needles per inch. Since a 51 gauge jersey knit fabric is formed on a machine having 34 needles per inch and since only one half the loops of the jersey knit fabric are interknit with loops of the rib-knit fabric, the seven needle difference per inch causes the rib-knit cuff to contract a sufficient amount when removed from the knitting machine to provide the necessary or desirable contraction for the cuff portions of the garment. With a jersey knit body portion of 42 gauge fabric satisfactory ribknit cuffs were provided on a 10 cut (20 needles per inch) flat bed rib knitting machine.

It will be understood, of course, that the length of the rib-knit portion of the fabric along the interconnecting lines 18 or 20 is co-extensive with the length of the adjacent edge of the jersey knit portion of the garment, when said portions are being formed on the machine. The difference in the number of needles per inch and, therefore, the number of formed loops per inch between the jersey knit fabric and the rib-knit fabric results in the provision of a shorter length cuff which is stretched so that every loop of the rib-knit fabric is matched with every other loop of the adjacent jersey knit fabric and in the stretched condition adjacent edges of the jersey knit and rib-knit fabrics are coextensive. Accordingly, when a the fabric is removed from the knitting machine, the ribknit cuff contracts into its normal or unstretched condition, according to the difference in the number of needles per inch between the rib and jersey knitting machines, and the necessary contraction at the cuff portions of the garment results in a manner which is not excessive and which provides a pleasing appearance to the garment even though the garment or fabric is provided with a fine gauge jersey knit portion to which the rib-knit portion is interknit.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise than as herein specifically illustrated or described, and that certain changes in the form and arrangement of parts and in the specific manner of practicing the invention may be made Without departing from the underlying idea or principles of this invention Within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of knitting a fabric having a fine gauge jersey knit portion and a rib-knit portion, said method comprising providing a rib-knit fabric, providing a transfer bar for a jersey knitting machine having half the number of needles as said knitting machine, looping each loop of a course of said rib-knit fabric on a corresponding needle of said transfer bar, and operating said knitting machine whereby a course of the resulting knitted jersey portion is interknit with said rib-knit fabric with the loops in a course of said rib-knit portion interknit with alt-er nate loops only of said course of the jersey knit portion.

2. A method of knitting a fabric having a fine gauge jersey knit portion and a rib-knit portion, said method comprising providing a rib-knit fabric having a loose course of loops, providing a transfer bar for a jersey knitting machine having sinkers and dividers, said transfer bar having half the number of needles as said knitting machine, looping each loop of a course of said rib-knit fabric on a corresponding needle of said transfer bar, and operating said knitting machine whereby a course of the resulting knitted jersey portion is interknit with said rib-knit fabric with the loops in a course of said rib-knit portion interknit with alternate loops only of said course of the jersey knit portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 264,349 Shelton Sept. 12, 1882 996,964 Blood July 4, 1911 1,247,972 Montagne Nov. 27, 1917 1,849,593 Schonfeld Mar. 15, 1932 2,216,066 Cecka Sept. 24, 1940 hand v 

1. A METHOD OF KNITTING A FABRIC HAVING A FINE GUAGE JERSEY KNIT PORTION AND A RIB-KNIT PORTION, SAID METHOD COMPRISING PROVIDING A RIB-KNIT FABRIC, PROVIDING A TRANSFER BAR FOR A JERSEY KNITTING MACHINE HAVING HALF THE NUMBER OF NEEDLES AS SAID KNITTING MACHINE, LOOPING EACH LOOP OF A COURSE OF SAID RIB-KNIT FABRIC ON A CORRESPONDING NEEDLE OF SAID TRANSFER BAR, AND OPERATING SAID KNITTING MACHINE WHEREBY A COURSE OF THE RESULTING KNITTED JERSEY PORTION IS INTERKNIT WITH SAID RIB-KNIT FABRIC WITH THE LOOPS IN A COURSE OF SAID RIB-KNIT PORTION INTERKNIT WITH ALTERNATE LOOPS ONLY OF SAID COURSE OF THE JERSEY KNIT PORTION. 